Disrupter cannons, also referred to as disrupters or cannons, are used by military, bomb squad, and other emergency personnel to destroy or disable explosive devices such as IEDs, bombs, and ordinance.
A disrupter cannon launches a projectile toward an explosive device. The projectile impacts and disrupts components within the explosive device to disable or destroy the explosive device or to facilitate personnel in disabling or destroying the explosive device.
In operation, a projectile and a cartridge are inserted into the disrupter cannon. The cartridge includes a primer and an explosive charge (e.g., pyrotechnic, gun powder). The cannon is aimed toward (e.g., at) the explosive device. A mount (e.g., tripod) may be used to position the disrupter to aim the disrupter toward the explosive device. The cartridge is activated (e.g., ignited) and a rapidly expanding gas from the cartridge propels the projectile from a barrel of the cannon toward the explosive device.
In conventional disrupters, shock tube is used to actuate (e.g., move) a firing pin in the disrupter to ignite the cartridge to launch the projectile. In present disrupter cannons, the shock tube is coupled to the disrupter using a plastic retention nut or a fitting that encircles the shock tube with fingers that grip the shock tube. A problem with present shock tube connectors is that it is time consuming to connect the shock tube to the disrupter cannon and even more time consuming to disconnect the shock tube from the disrupter cannon after the disrupter cannon has been fired. Unfortunately, the tactical environment while disabling an explosive device is critical and every second counts.
Personnel that use disrupter cannons would benefit from a coupler that enables shock tube to be quickly coupled to (e.g., connected to, inserted into) the disrupter cannon. Such personnel would further benefit from a coupler that automatically (e.g., without human intervention, without intervention by a user) decouples (e.g., disconnects) from the shock tube responsive to firing the disrupter cannon. Automatic disconnection of the shock tube from the disrupter cannon would efficiently make the disrupter cannon ready to set up to disable another explosive device.